Uber has expanded its option for passengers to request electric vehicles (EVs) to the whole of London.
The service, called Uber Green, now allows all 3.5m London-based customers to request electric cars to pick them up, at no extra charge.
Despite the price for riders staying the same, Uber has said that drivers operating Uber Green services will receive a 15% higher fare per trip in a bid to encourage drivers to switch to electric.
It comes as Uber faces a driver shortage in the capital, with the Silicon Valley company raising prices in an attempt to lure drivers back to the ride-hailing app.
In November, Uber hiked prices in London by 10% and is reportedly looking to increase them by another “20%”.
The EV move is part of Uber’s pledge to transform its ride-sharing app to only use electric vehicles in the entirety of its London service by 2025.
The company previously launched Uber Green as an option in London in 2021, however, it was limited exclusively to zone 1.
Since the launch of Uber Green, the company has increased the number of EVs operating in London to more than 5,000, with plans to increase the number to more than 10,000 by the end of the year, and further plans to exclusively operate using EVs by 2025.
London is at the centre of Uber’s wider electric vehicle transformation plans, with more EVs on Uber in London than in any other city.
“Since we launched Uber Green last year, thousands of drivers have switched to an EV, benefiting from lower running costs and higher earnings on Uber,” said Jamie Heywood, Uber general manager for Northern and Eastern Europe.
“We are excited to now offer every rider in London the opportunity to choose electric – helping to tackle climate change and clean up London’s air.”
UK Transport Minister Trudy Harrison said: “It’s brilliant to see Uber playing its part in the drive towards a greener, cleaner future. This step comes just a few days after we published our landmark EV Infrastructure Strategy, which showcases what can be achieved when the public and private sector work together on the nationwide switch to EVs.”
Uber was recently granted a 30-month licence to operate in London, following its repeated clashes with Transport for London.
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